same same but different

the past five days were the most enriching cip experience ever. i didnt regret signing up for childaid 2011 ((: it's like a concert by young people and children to help needy children. of course it was tiring and totally sian at some points of time, but was really happy yesterday ^^

was assigned as chaperone to the ballerinas, who are really angels as compared to some other kids especially those boys who are hyperactive. chaperone is something like a facilitator, just that we have to usher and cue them to be on stage. other than that was babysitting the little kids.

it gets pretty tiring especially we are always the earliest to arrive in the morning and the latest to finish everything, checking that the performers didnt leave anything in the dressing rooms. and it's especially stressed when in the backstage and having the walkie talkie is just so... weird.

when we first started wenhui jiahui and i (lol our names so similar right! :D) were always swimming in our own land cause the other chaperones reported 2 weeks earlier and knew the concert perfomances head to toe. and we were like... what? all the time.

but it got better after a few days and lol there was this reporter-like lady from shanghai who talked to me for almost half an hour while i was on duty managing 2 groups of performers (i guess cause no one can really speak chinese). woah multi tasking was difficult i was listening to the walkie talkie and trying to decipher what the lady was saying and coming up with a reply in chinese! mymy chinese. how long have i not used it haha. she asked so many questions that got me thinking and it became like a reflection.

like how this cip is entirely different from those that we usually have such as marathons and helping out in orphanage/old folk's home. chaperoning the performers was real back-stage work and it was the coolest experience ever. it was like going on stage, and when there's applause, you can feel the pride and joy, like you've helped to put a performance together. and when the concert ended, it's kind of funny when we look happier than the performers lol.

and this whole cip is just something completely away from academics and schooling. it's an exposure to something that makes everyone feel happy-- music.

it's wonderful that the performers have found their calling at such tender ages, like as young as 6. they know what they want to be in the future, they hope for achievements, and they are working towards their dreams. in comparison i'm walking a path that might lead me to nowhere and my interests do me no good because everything is to be practical in the world i live in. i hope someday, i can finally find and pursue something that i'm truly passionate about.

anyway, the concert was a success and it had a good ending. i shall hope to volunteer next year as chaperone again heheh! :D